Senate Hearing on Defense Nominations
Senate Armed Services Committee
July 13th, 2021
Witnesses
Mr. Carlos Del Toro – Nominee to be Secretary of the Navy, Honorable Gilbert Cisneros Jr. – Nominee to be Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, Ms. Kathleen Miller – Nominee to be Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller), Dr. Mara Karlin – Nominee to be Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy, Plans, and Capabilities, and Mr. Michael Connor – Nominee to be Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works.
All the witnesses that participated in the hearing received high praise from the members of the Senate Armed Services Committee for their service to the United States. A majority of the committee’s questions went to Mr. Del Toro. Senator Reed (D-RI) complimented Mr. Del Toro specifically and the Senator expressed that Mr. Del Toro is very qualified to be Secretary of the Navy. Mr. Del Toro’s previous service on one of the Navy’s first mixed-gender crews on the USS Bulkeley was praised.
Mr. Del Toro’s experience as a US Navy commanding officer allowed for him to reassure members of the committee of his commitment to fixing internal issues. Mr. Del Toro and Mr. Cisneros described to the committee members that they will be looking deeply into fixing issues related to sexual assault in the armed services if they are confirmed. Mr. Del Toro was also seen as the proper person to address micromanagement issues within the Navy. However, Mr. Del Toro did describe to the committee that there are times in which micromanagement is necessary, as during conflict or in enemy waters.
The shift in modern adversaries was touched upon numerous times by members of the committee and the witnesses, as multiple comments were made about the shift in tactics and resources from a conflict in the middle east to rising tensions in the Indo-Pacific and Arctic regions. Multiple witnesses described how the transition to having wide-ranging unmanned system capabilities is important but is an extraordinary military transition and won’t be pushed forward without proper insight into usage. Mr. Del Toro committed to reviewing specific measures regarding cost with Senator Shaheen (D-NH) and Admiral Gilday. Mr. Del Toro described the specific importance of unmanned systems in the Indo-Pacific and the need to get such systems integrated with existing platforms.
Similarly, Mr. Del Toro received questions regarding ship procurement, and he stated that he fully supports the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act that included a goal of a 355 ship Navy and sees the fleet as a necessary deterrent to modern adversaries. There will be a more dominant maritime strategy moving forward and Mr. Del Toro described how it is his duty to make the case for a larger fleet. Such a fleet can help deter adversaries and the threat that China is starting to impose for defense as well as free trade.
Senator Cotton (R-AR) raised the point to the witnesses that there has been a lack of a focus on warfighting since the fall of the Soviet Union and now that there is a new pacing threat there needs to be a renewed focus on warfighting. Mr. Del Toro responded to the Senator in agreement stating that there will be more focus on warfighting and a war-ready Navy.
In relation to the new pacing threat with China, multiple Senators had questions on the capabilities of the nation’s Navy and Marine Corps. Mr. Del Toro stated that our allies need to be protected and that Taiwan must feel that the United States will protect it. Mr. Del Toro described that it needs to be absolutely clear for defense and deterrence reasons that the United States will protect Taiwan and provide the nation with any and all resources it may need. Another area that Senators, specifically Senator Sullivan (R-AK), wanted to discuss was the Artic capabilities of the Navy. Senator Sullivan requested, and Mr. Del Toro agreed, that Mr. Del Toro will come back to the Senator with a commitment to the Arctic within 45 days of being confirmed. A question that Senator Sullivan had was how is the Navy going to achieve anything in the Artic with only one working ice breaker and with no artic deep-water port? Mr. Del Toro agreed that there needed to be a more focused effort on the arctic region.
The subject of readiness was raised on multiple occasions as it related to the pacing threat with modern adversaries. The Navy hopes to extend the boundaries of Naval Air Station Fallon and Mr. Del Toro committed to meet with tribal leaders and members of the Department of the Interior on expansion. However, Mr. Del Toro expressed that the station is a necessary component to having a ready force. Mr. Cisneros discussed how the physical fitness of our nations’ military-eligible citizens is severely lacking and is a readiness issue. Senator Tuberville (R-AL) stated that of the 30 million military-eligible young people that are in the United States, only 450,000 meet physical fitness standards to be in the military. Mr. Cisneros discussed that recruitment and retention have become a necessity for the armed forces, but the United States military standards will not drop.
For a recording of the full committee hearing, please use this link.